Liechtenstein small in size, great for outdoor activities.
If you want to see a small country thoroughly, why not set aside a few days to explore it on foot? I set off six days. When I looked up my Lonely Planet book, Epic Hikes of Europe, Liechtenstein came up. I had not been there before, and like many others, I knew little about this country, apart from the fact that it is small and rich. So, therefore, I started planning my week’s trip to the Alps.
First Zurich
The easiest way to reach Liechtenstein from Oslo is to fly into Zurich. I stayed there for two nights before taking the train to Sargans, a village near the border of Liechtenstein, as there is no train service through that area. I will not include anything from Zurich or Sargans in this post, as it should focus solely on Liechtenstein. However, I did take a brief look at Sargans before I started walking towards the border.
The art of borders
Borders are a strange thing that exists only in our heads. We have been told the story of how people of the past drew a line on a piece of paper, but it is not necessarily visible in nature. In the picture above, you see the river and the mountain landscape in the background. The river is the Rhein; everything on the left bank of the river is Switzerland, and to the right, Liechtenstein. The Rhein is doing a turn to the left further on, so the village you see halfway up the mountains is Triesenberg, in Liechtenstein. And that was also my destination for my first night here.
Liechtenstein facts
Liechtenstein (officially the Principality of Liechtenstein) is a country in Western Europe. It is the sixth smallest country in the world. Liechtenstein is known as a principality. This means that the monarch has the title of Prince (Fürst). The country has a population of about 40,000. They speak German and use the Swiss franc as currency. In the 17th century, the Liechtenstein family sought to increase its power within the Holy Roman Empire. They purchased the lands of the County of Vaduz and the Lordship of Schellenberg, uniting them into a single principality named Liechtenstein. Apparently, none of the Prince family had visited the country before in the 20th century and settled there.
Hikers paradise
On both sides of the Rhein in this flat landscape, there is a walking/cycling path. There is a bus leaving from Sargans that passes by all the villages in Liechtenstein. But, since this was going to be a hiking trip, I chose to walk. The first stage is 14 kilometres. Although walking on the flat asphalt surface along the river is convenient, it becomes somewhat boring; therefore, I found a forest path that ran parallel to it. Liechtenstein is said to have the densest network of hiking trails in Europe, with more than 400 kilometres.
Vaduz the capital
To avoid making this post too long, I will not write one chapter per day; that would be too tedious. Because I did not see or experience exciting things every day. However, after spending the first night in Triesenberg, a small, charming village nestled in the mountainside, I walked through a large forest. Eventually, I arrived at Vaduz Burg, the residence of the Prince family. The Castle is literally overlooking the whole capital.
Unfortunately, I have to say Vaduz was a long yawn. There is nothing old or beautiful to photograph. The main shopping street, like most tourist destinations, lacks any charm. On the outskirts, I did see some really fantastic modern villas, though. One of my hosts during these days told me that Lichtenstein is relatively new-rich, and the mentality is often to tear down old buildings for new, charmless ones. The same host told me to walk to Feldkirch in Austria. There, they have an Altstadt with charm and cafes. I was tempted, but this was supposed to be a hike only in Liechtenstein.
The Red House
The “Red House” is a stepped gabled house with an adjoining residential tower and a barn. It was built in 1338 and got its name from the dark red paint on its exterior. It has had several owners over the years, including the St. Johann monastery. The Red House is now privately owned and is not open to the public. This is supposed to be the oldest building in Vaduz. For Norwegians, this is quite interesting: here in the Alps, it is pretty standard to build a farmhouse and barn adjacent to each other.
Alternativ accomodation
One night, I stayed in Gafadura Hütte, a mountain cottage with a dormitory. It was friendly and closer to the high mountains, as I also wanted to reach a summit one day. It is a good alternative, even though a bit primitive, to stay in places like that. But for one night, it is okay, but I didn’t sleep much. The good thing is that they provide a nice dinner and breakfast.
Reaching a summit
Most of the hikes I did in Liechtenstein were in forests and on plains, but there are also several hikes high up in the rocky mountains. However, since I was carrying my luggage from one accommodation to another, I was a little reluctant to hike the entire route. So instead, I went to Gafadura Hütte, left my backpack there, and started the hike up to the Drei Swestern. Not too far up from Gafadura Hütte, one crosses the border to Austria a couple of times.
Gafadura Hütte had a very specific dinnertime, so I had to be down again for that, but I did get up into the heights and did a bit of light climbing. In retrospect, I wish I had planned the trip a little bit differently, because the high mountains on the more Austrian side should have been incredible, but you can not get it all right. I felt that I got a good bird’s-eye view of the valleys.
Summary
In the end, I had a great time hiking for six days and 130 kilometres. I could maybe have found more spectacular hikes in Switzerland, Austria and even Italy. But hey, why not do something that not everybody does? I visited eleven villages and the Capital, Vaduz, and I think I can say I have seen most of the country. It is not more than about 25 kilometres from north to south, which I walked back the last day, before a comfy hotel and the train to Zurich early next morning. I am always open to trying something unusual.
